


Four's a Crowd

by rlin



Series: Linked Universe [6]
Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Violence, Chapter 6 is very rough so be warned, Character Death, First Meetings, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Heavy Angst, Legend (Linked Universe) Has Issues, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), Sort of MCD but also kinda not, Trust Issues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-17 11:00:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28847955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rlin/pseuds/rlin
Summary: Hyrule, Legend, and Mask found themselves in a new time. A new time meant another Link to find, and find him they soon do.So why can't Legend bring himself to trust this new Link?
Relationships: Four & Hyrule & Legend & Time (Linked Universe), Four & Legend (Linked Universe)
Series: Linked Universe [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2063523
Comments: 10
Kudos: 111





	1. A Walled Town

Hyrule, Legend, and Mask found themselves in a green field that had a lot of trees. They had just gone through a portal, and needed to find their bearings.

To the north was a castle, and to the south was a walled town.

They exchanged looks.

“Do any of you recognize this Hyrule?” Mask asked.

Legend and Hyrule shook their heads.

“A new Hyrule should mean a new Link, then,” Legend said. “What’s the chance that the castle to the north is the Hyrule Castle of this time?”

“Pretty likely, probably.”

“I think we should check out the town,” Hyrule said. “We could learn things about this time, maybe ask around if they know where the Hero of this time is.”

“Okay, let’s get going then.”

△  
△△

The town was very close, so it wasn’t long before they reached the gates of this city.

There was a sign that read “Hyrule Town.”

“So I think this might be this time’s version of Castle Town?” Mask said. “After all, it is within walking distance of what is presumably Hyrule Castle.”

“Yeah, probably.”

Hyrule Town was a rather cheery place, even though it was significantly smaller than the Hyrule Castle Town of Mask’s time.

They passed under an archway with a bell and a winged Triforce (a rather common motif in each Hyrule, apparently) and found themselves in some sort of central square, where there was a market. Merchants there were hawking their wares to a group of interested Hylians.

They asked around, introducing themselves as travelers. They were told where they could find the library, a café, and an inn.

They went to the library first. Legend immediately went to get a map of this Hyrule.

“Look,” he said, “If we’re going to have to find our way around this Hyrule, I want to know where we’re going.”

Mask and Hyrule decided to look at the legends of this time to see if they could figure out where in history they were.

“Hopefully it will be more successful than it was when we were in your Hyrule,” the traveler told Mask.

While Hyrule got some books, Mask got distracted by tiny mouse-like people. He had seen a few growing up in the forest. They were called the Minish, apparently.

They were also apparently associated with some previous hero, but Mask didn’t remember the details.

Maybe he could get info from them about this hero. It might even be the Link of this time!

Well, if he could talk to him. He wasn’t sure if they knew or spoke his language, but he could always use the Mask of Truth if there was a language barrier.

△  
△△

“Oh, hey, Traveler. Looks like quite the selection of books you have here. Were you looking for Hyrulean history as well as legends?”

Hyrule nodded.

“Where’s Mask, anyway?”

“I’m not sure. But I can find him if needed.”

“I’ll just assume he’s reading on his own, then.”

Legend flipped through a book. “So apparently Hyrule is only a few centuries old in this time.”

“Wow.”

“This book even covers the royal line as far back as King Link I.”

“The founder of Hyrule?”

“The very one. Though the records are incredibly fuzzy for the first couple of centuries of Hyrule’s existence.”

“So, this we are centuries before the Imprisoning War or Mask’s time or whatever is going on in the timeline.”

“Seems like it.”

Legend opened another book. “The historical record seems to trail off a couple of centuries ago, though. Not sure where the Triforce is at the time. It might be sealed away, it might not.”

“Do they talk about the myths surrounding Hyrule’s founder?”

“Yeah, even only a few centuries after Hyrule’s founding, the historical record of that time is kind of distorted. So the first century or two of Hyrule’s existence is shrouded in myth.”

“Huh. Do you ever think we’ll end up in that time?”

“Hopefully. I’m willing to bet money that that particular Link will join us at some point.”

“I’m not taking that bet, Veteran.”

Legend snorted.

△  
△△

Mask rejoined them a few minutes later. “I’ve gotten a couple leads on the hero of this time.”

“Oh, really?” Hyrule asked curiously.

“Yeah. Apparently, the Link of this time lives in South Hyrule Field. He comes to Hyrule Town from time to time and is friends with this time’s Princess Zelda. And he also saved Hyrule a few times.”

“Of course,” Legend said. “Come on, let’s get lunch. I’m hungry, and I want to be able to eat real food for the first time since we were in Northern Palace.”

△  
△△

There was a bakery in Hyrule Town that was apparently highly recommended.

Hyrule got a croissant, Mask got some brioche, and Legend got some pie. They quickly ate it.

The pie was incredibly buttery and flakey, while the brioche and croissant were fluffy. They were delicious.

And then Hyrule bit into something hard. “Ow! I almost broke a tooth!”

He spat out something into his hand. It was a small green stone.

“Oh, congratulations!” said one of the bakers. “You got a kinstone!”

The Links exchanged confused looks.

Anyway, once they were done eating, they decided to follow that lead Mask found.

They first asked around a bit. They found out that a person named Link indeed lived there, with his grandfather. They were the two best smiths in all of Hyrule, from what the townspeople said.

“I hear that Link’s craftmanship has even exceeded his grandfather’s skill at this point,” one townsperson said.

“Oh, he even gets commissions from the Royal Family. He’s also childhood friends with the Princess herself,” another said.

“He’s a great person, even if he’s slightly eccentric,” said another.

“How so?” Legend had asked.

“Well, he’s sometimes really indecisive. Like he can’t agree with himself. And his mood can change really quickly. But he’s incredibly skilled both with forging and wielding weapons.”

The forge where this Link crafted and sold weapons was apparently the same place where Link lived, which was in South Hyrule Field, not that far from Hyrule Town.

And so the Chain set out to find this Link.


	2. The Forge and Its Hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They also had a reputation at being able to make these high-quality weapons in bulk. It seemed nearly impossible for a forge run by only two blacksmiths.
> 
> Of course, such a feat was much easier when Link could split into four.

Link and his grandfather were having a rather routine day at their forge.

Their projects today were a few swords and spears that were commissioned by the Royal Guard.

Such an honor would be immense for any smith, but for Link and Smith it was routine. They had a well-deserved reputation for being the best smiths in all of Hyrule, to the point that the Royal Family insisted on _only_ sourcing weapons from their forge.

They also had a reputation at being able to make these high-quality weapons in bulk. It seemed nearly impossible for a forge run by only two blacksmiths.

Of course, such a feat was much easier when Link could split into four.

It was a perfectly normal day until there was a knock on the door.

“I’ll answer it,” Link told Smith. He opened the door.

It was Princess Zelda, known to Link as Dot, wearing a cloak over her usual dress.

“Oh, hey, Dot. What’s with the cloak?”

“Didn’t really want to be recognized. Father probably wouldn’t approve of me sneaking out of the castle.”

“I see.” The two walked in.

“Dot, it’s actually really convenient of you to come here today. I have something to show you.”

“Oh?” Dot said.

Link lead Dot into the back room, where the weapons were crafted. “I’ve actually been working on this for the past couple of weeks.” He handed Dot an elegantly crafted rapier. “This is for you.”

“Oh, really? Thank you!” Dot examined the sword. The rapier’s hilt was decorated with a few jewels, and there were elegant designs etched into the metal. “This is wonderful!”

“I’m glad you like it! I put extra effort in making sure this is one of the best weapons I’ve made.” Link smiled. “Anyway, what brings you here today?”

“You’ve spent time in Hyrule Castle before, you know how dreadfully boring those formal events get.”

“Ah. Didn’t want to attend court functions?”

“Of course not!” Dot laughed. “I needed a breath of fresh air anyway, so it was either spend time in Hyrule Town or go here.”

“Well, I need to work on these weapons commissioned by your dad, but I guess I can chat while I work.” Link heated a blade in the furnace, quickly working the bellows to get it to a high temperature. “So, how’s things?”

“Nothing too out of the ordinary. Frankly, it’s been quite boring recently.”

Link took the blade out of the furnace once it was at its desired temperature and laid it on an anvil. “Way to tempt fate, Dot,” Link chuckled as he started hammering away at the metal. “Now there will be something strange happening, maybe even a new threat!”

Dot laughed. “You know as well as I am that Vaati isn’t coming back. What do you expect, that demon king from the legends of the Hero of the Skies to reincarnate or something?”

“You never know,” Link said with a glint of mischief in his eyes. “Maybe I might break all the pottery in Hyrule Castle!”

“Please don’t _actually_ do that, Link.”

“How about I split and make it take a quarter of the time?” Link laughed. “No, of course I’m not going to do that.”

△  
△△

South Hyrule Field was about the size of North Hyrule Field. Which wasn’t _that_ large in comparison to places like Mask’s Hyrule Field, but it was still a fairly large place with plenty of trees.

There sat a house on a small hill in the middle of the field, and it reminded the Links a bit of the small hill Legend’s house was on.

“That seems to be the only house here, so this is probably the house of this time’s Link,” Hyrule said.

“Well, getting there shouldn’t be too hard, they’re right by the south road,” Legend noted, staring at his map.

They followed the road, which was completely uneventful. There weren’t even monsters in this time’s Hyrule Field.

They had heard from some of the chatter in Hyrule Town that monsters had been released after an incident, but they had been cleared by the soldiers with help from this time’s Link.

Of course, uneventfully walking down a road inevitably meant conversation.

“You know,” Mask said, “We’re probably going to be joined by the founder of Hyrule at some point. After all, he was also named Link. How soon do you think it will be before we meet him?”

“Not sure,” Legend said.

Mask raised an eyebrow. “When I meet him, I’ll have a few words to give him about that Master Sword. It’s only caused trouble for me.”

“Ah.” Legend decided that he didn’t want to know _how_ the Master Sword had only caused trouble for the boy.

He glanced at Hyrule. The traveler looked somewhat lost in this conversation.

Legend changed the topic so that Hyrule could hopefully participate more. “It’s kind of strange, though. There’re absolutely no monsters. If we hadn’t been told otherwise, I wouldn’t have guessed that there’s a hero at this time.”

“There’s plenty of monsters in my time, and we’ve seen the monsters in Mask’s time,” Hyrule noted. “Veteran, are there monsters out in the open in your time?”

“There’s a few octoroks, the desert has vultures, and the woods have these crows. Nothing too bad, but they’re very annoying.”

“Cool,” Mask said. “I know you’ve seen the Stalchildren of my time. A real nuisance, those ones. Hyrule Field also has Peahats.”

“What were up with those?” Legend asked. “It wouldn’t stop so we couldn’t kill it!”

Mask looked confused. “Wait for it to stop? I don’t know what you’re talking about. You shoot the root at the bottom while it flies.”

Hyrule cut in before Legend could respond. “Well, I guess the Peahats of your time are different, then.”

They walked in silence for a bit longer, when Hyrule brought something up.

“You know, it’s kind of concerning that we’re assembling multiple heroes from throughout Hyrule’s history.”

“So you mean it’s more than that the goddesses hate us and want us to suffer?” Legend snarked.

Mask muttered something in agreement with Legend.

Hyrule continued. “I mean, like, from what we know, when there’s a threat to Hyrule, there’s usually a hero that appears to fight it off. But it’s only one hero. What threat is massive enough to require so many heroes?”

They had reached the house now, which from what they had heard should be where the Link of this time lived and worked. “Well, we’re here, I guess,” Mask said.

He walked up to the door and knocked.


	3. The Veteran's Burden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Uh… Traveler?” asked Mask. “Is Veteran okay?”
> 
> “I don’t think he is…” the traveler replied. Hyrule had seen a similar reaction before, when Mask had seen the evil mask in Legend’s house.
> 
> This could not be good.

Legend knocked on the door.

He heard a voice say, “You can come in!”

The veteran opened the door and walked in, with Hyrule and Mask following.

The room they had entered had been turned into a shop of sorts. There was a large, old man wearing an apron sitting in a chair, looking at them. He was presumably the grandfather of this time’s Link, Smith.

“Welcome to the forge, feel free to check out the weapons. There’s price tags if you want to buy them, or you can get one custom-made. Commissions start at 500 rupees.”

“Thanks.” Legend decided to act natural and examine some of the displayed weapons. As he had worked as a smith’s apprentice himself, he knew what to look for in weapon quality.

He picked up a simple, elegant dagger and cast an appraising eye on the blade. The craftsmanship was absolutely amazing. It was far better than anything he’d made.

“…Wow. This blade is one of the best weapons I’ve ever seen,” Legend got out.

“We pride ourselves in making the best weapons in all of Hyrule,” Smith said.

Actually, there were only two weapons he’d seen that were of better quality. One was the Master Sword, the legendary Blade of Evil’s Bane itself, which was said to have been forged through the power of the goddesses themselves.

The other one was the mysterious gold-hilted shortsword he had found in the Palace of the Four Sword. He could picture light reflecting off the blade in four distinct colors, and the round black gems laid in the crossguard and the pommel.

Memories of the four strange Dark Links that he’d fought there bubbled up. The colors of their tunics, in green, red, blue, and violet. Their short stature.

They were _definitely_ not meant to be a dark reflection of himself. He’d fought Dark Links in his own image before, when he had confronted Veran.

He put down the knife and examined a sword. Again, the quality of the blade was absolutely breathtaking.

Another distinct memory from the Palace of the Four Sword bubbled up. Those Dark Links seemed to have recognized him. As if he were an old friend.

He had felt strangely mournful when he took the Four Sword in hand, as if it had belonged to a fallen friend. He knew that feeling, he felt that same emotion when he took up his dying uncle’s sword.

But he’d never read too much into it.

Legend brushed those thoughts out of his head. He couldn’t be stuck in the past. He couldn’t dwell on the sewers of Hyrule Castle, or the Dark World, or Koholint Island.

“Uh… Veteran?” whispered Hyrule. “Aren’t we supposed to be finding someone?”

“Oh, right, thanks.” Veteran put down the magnificently crafted blade. “Actually, can we speak to Link?”

“Link? He’s in the back room. But a friend is visiting right now, and you probably shouldn’t intrude.”

“Ah.” Legend nodded. He picked up a glaive and looked examined the carefully etched patterns in the blade of the polearm.

He examined the edge of the blade. It was razor-sharp and no doubt could easily slice Legend’s finger if he wasn’t careful. And yet the blade was stout enough that it would hold strong during a thrusting attack, even against armored opponents.

The quality of the metal was also a good part of what made these swords so good. There were no irregularities in the metal, and from what he could tell, no impurities that would weaken the blade.

The design etched into the blade was elegant, and the metal had been polished to a mirrored shine. It was a perfect blend of appearance and function.

With weapons like these, there was no doubt that the forge’s reputation as the best in all of Hyrule was deserved. No wonder why Hyrule Castle exclusively ordered weapons from this place.

He put the glaive where he found it and was about to examine another weapon (a longsword) when he heard footsteps approaching the door in the back room.

The door opened, and a girl wearing a dress and a large ribbon in her hair walked through, followed by a person who looked extremely familiar.

“Oh, you should have seen Portho’s reaction when he found out!” the girl said, laughing.

Smith turned to the girl. “Already going, Dot?”

“Well, you know, how it is. Father’s probably terribly worried, he’ll probably start looking for me if I don’t return soon.”

“Another time, Dot,” said the person behind Dot.

“See you later, Link!” Dot said, before leaving.

Okay, so Dot was almost certainly the Princess Zelda of this time. And the other person was Link.

“Oh, Link!” Smith said. “These people wanted to talk to you about something.”

Legend finally got a good look at this new Link. He was wearing a thick apron of a blacksmith over a multicolored tunic. He had long hair and a green headband. He was also rather short.

Wait a second. The tunic’s colors were green, red, blue, and violet. Just like the colors of the tunic worn by the Dark Links he’d fought in the Palace of the Four Sword. He also looked _exactly_ like them, complete with the hair and short stature.

And taking into account the _feelings_ he had gone through when he ventured through the Palace of the Four Sword…

Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no

△  
△△

Hyrule was looking around the shop with Mask when Mask asked him a question.

“Hey Traveler, why does Veteran seem so fixated on the weapons?”

Hyrule turned. Indeed, Legend was gazing deeply at a weapon, examining the blade.

“I mean, Veteran is a blacksmith’s apprentice. He no doubt knows what to look for in a well-crafted blade.”

“Huh. Is that what he does when he’s not adventuring?” Mask seemed to be thinking hard.

“Seems like it.”

“By the way, Traveler, what do _you_ do when you’re not adventuring?”

Hyrule shrugged. “I like to travel a lot. But I sometimes spend time in Northern Palace. Aurora and Dawn are really insistent on teaching me how to read.”

“ _Can_ you read?”

“Well, yes, but I’m not a very fluent reader.” Hyrule felt a bit embarrassed. “The Zeldas want me to get more practice.”

“Huh.” Mask was _definitely_ thinking about something.

There was a sudden commotion, and Hyrule’s and Mask’s heads whipped around to face the direction of the noise.

The door had opened, and a girl was walking through it, chatting with another person.

“Oh, you should have seen Portho’s reaction when he found out!” she said.

Smith turned to the girl. “Already going, Dot?”

“Well, you know, how it is. Father’s probably terribly worried, he’ll probably start looking for me if I don’t return soon.”

“Another time, Dot,” said the person behind Dot.

“See you later, Link!” Dot said. She then left.

Okay, so this other person was Link. He was only _just_ taller than Mask, and wore a thick apron over a multicolored tunic (green, red, blue, and violet). He had long hair and wore a green headband.

“Oh, Link!” Smith said. “These people wanted to talk to you about something.”

Hyrule saw Legend stare at the new Link for a few seconds before the veteran turned deathly pale.

“Uh… Traveler?” asked Mask. “Is Veteran okay?”

“I don’t think he is…” the traveler replied. Hyrule had seen a similar reaction before, when Mask had seen the evil mask in Legend’s house.

This could not be good.


	4. The Smith and His Sword

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Veteran, what was that all about? Why were you just staring blankly at this time’s Link?” Hyrule looked very concerned.
> 
> Legend stayed stubbornly silent.

“So, who are you?” asked the new Link. “And why is one of you just blankly staring?”

“We go by nicknames,” Hyrule explained. “Since we have the same names.”

“I’m Traveler,” he said, pointing at himself. “He’s Mask,” Hyrule pointed at Mask, “and he’s Veteran.” Hyrule pointed at Legend.

“Huh. Can I ask what’s wrong with Veteran? It looks like he’s… stopped working.” Link waved his hand in front of Legend’s eyes. Legend reflexively blinked, but he otherwise stayed unresponsive.

“Uh… I don’t know, actually.” Hyrule frowned. “Can we talk to you in private? It’s an extremely important matter.”

Link shrugged. “Sure.” He led Hyrule and Mask into the back room. “So, what’s so important that you had to ask to speak privately to me?”

Hyrule took a deep breath. “My real name is Link, Mask’s real name is Link, and Veteran’s real name is Link. We’re heroes scattered throughout Hyrule history, though all from after your time. There’s some mysterious new threat to Hyrule that threatens it throughout time, and we need a large group of heroes to stop it.”

Link thought for a moment. “Hm. So you want me to join you?”

“Yes.”

“Somehow, I don’t find travelling with multiple versions of me to save the world that surprising, given what I’ve gone through,” Link said dryly. “You can call me Smithy.”

Link continued. “I’ll need to finish what I was doing and start packing. I’ll be ready by sunset. Meet me here then, I guess you can spend the rest of the afternoon in Hyrule Town.”

“What about Veteran? He’s still… how he is.”

Link shrugged. “I’m not a medic, don’t ask me.”

They walked back into the shop room. Legend was still just standing there.

Hyrule considered his options for a moment, and then he violently shook Legend.

“Gah!” Legend flailed around, before glaring at Hyrule. “Traveler, what the f*ck?”

“Veteran, you’ve been unresponsive for seventeen minutes,” Mask deadpanned. “Or did you just want to stand here in the middle of a forge blankly staring?”

“Veteran, you’ve looked like you’ve seen a ghost,” Hyrule said. “And not in the literal sense. Let's go outside.” _We need to talk_ went unsaid but they all seemed to understand the subtext anyway.

Hyrule and Mask ushered Legend outside.

“Veteran, what was that all about? Why were you just staring blankly at this time’s Link?” Hyrule looked very concerned.

Legend stayed stubbornly silent.

“You looked like Mask when he saw Majora’s Mask in your house,” Hyrule continued.

Mask muttered something under his breath.

Legend rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, I get it. I didn’t react well.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Legend shook his head.

“Anyway,” Mask said, “Since you were out of it, let’s catch you up with what’s happened. The new Link is willing to join us. He’s given himself the nickname ‘Smithy.’ Anyway, Smithy said that he had to finish up some stuff and pack, so we’ll be meeting him at sunset.”

Hyrule nodded. “What Mask said.”

Legend nodded, though he still looked very shaken. “I guess we’ll be spending the afternoon at Hyrule Town, then.”

△  
△△

Link, or _Four_ , as he sometimes liked to refer to himself, watched Hyrule, Legend, and Mask leave.

He was glad that Hyrule was able to get Legend to come to. It was rather concerning that the veteran had reacted the way he did.

What caused him to do that, anyway?

Four turned to Smith. “It looks like I’m going to be going on an adventure.”

Smith raised an eyebrow.

Four went into the back room and picked the Four Sword. He held the sword in hand, examining the gold hilt and the round black gems laid into it. He unsheathed it, and watched light reflect off of it in shades of green, red, blue, and violet.

It still looked like it was in mint condition. But he had come to expect that from this sword.

The Four Sword was his finest work. His _magnum opus_. Four would likely never be able to create a sword that would exceed this one.

He held the sword upwards, thrusting it towards the ceiling.

There was a flash, and Four split.

“Well,” Green looked at the other three colors. “Looks like we have our work cut out in front of us.”

“Three heroes from the future? Sounds amazing!” Red said.

“If there’s a new threat to Hyrule, then we should get to destroying it,” said Blue.

Vio seemed lost in thought. “Three other heroes… A new threat to Hyrule… Interesting. I hope we can get answers to some of my- I mean, our questions.”

“Anyway,” Green said, “It’s going to be much easier to finish up everything if we all work. Let’s get going.”

△  
△△

Mask, Legend, and Hyrule were eating dinner in Hyrule Town, after which they planned to go back to South Hyrule Field and meet up with Four.

Mask and Hyrule were having a conversation, but Legend did not participate at all, and simply stared at his food as he ate it.

“Veteran, is there something wrong?”

Legend looked up from his food at Traveler’s question.

Hyrule continued, “You haven’t been talking _at all_. You usually at least _somewhat_ participate.”

“…Nothing. Just lost in thought, that’s all,” Legend responded.

“What happened back there, anyway? You first just froze up in Smithy’s house, and then now you’re not talking to anybody.”

“I’m fine.”

“Look, Veteran. If there’s something wrong, you should talk about it.”

“I’m _fine._ ”

“If you’re fine, then why have you been acting the way you have recently?”

Legend didn’t answer.

Mask spoke up. “There’s nothing wrong with holding secrets. I have many of my own that I’d rather not talk about. But if keeping it is just going to cause problems, you should talk about it. Or at least confide in _someone_ about it.”

Legend considered Mask’s words for a moment. “I’ve just had a lot to think about. Nothing too serious.”

“Nothing too serious, which is why you blanked out in Smithy’s house,” Mask deadpanned. “Oh, yes, nothing important. Just like how unimportant my fight with that mask was, that sure explains why you had to watch over me while I was unconscious for a few days.” He rolled his eyes. “You have _got_ to be kidding me.”

“Look, Mask. It won’t happen again.”

“It’d better not.”

The conversation trailed off into silence, which remained for the rest of dinner.


	5. A Meeting at the Forge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hyrule pondered that for a moment. “I think I don’t want to know why you’re mature enough to give me advice on this, with how young you are.”
> 
> Mask grinned. “Trust me, you don’t.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The flashback sequence here is from [Chapter 5 of A Hyrule to the Past](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28167603/chapters/69476565).

It was just after sunset, and Hyrule, Legend, and Mask were in South Hyrule Field as had been previously agreed on.

Hyrule stepped up and knocked on the door. He waited for a moment before Four answered it.

“Oh, hey, Traveler. I was almost finished packing up. You can come in.”

“Thanks, Smithy. Do you need a hand?”

“That would be a bit helpful, yes.”

Four was not dressed in an apron anymore, so they could get a better view of Four’s multicolored tunic. There was gold embroidery arranged in intricate patterns in the tunic, too.

He had a sword and shield on his back. The sword had a gold hilt and black gems laid into it. It looked very familiar.

Wait… he had seen that sword before.

△  
△△

_Hyrule had asked Legend what the purple mask and the two swords displayed on his wall were. Legend quickly warned Hyrule not to touch the mask, as it was evil. He explained that one of the swords was the sword he usually wielded, the Tempered Sword._

_Legend then took the other sword and held it in his hands. It was a shortsword with a golden hilt and a black gem inlaid into its crossguard and its pommel. The grip, instead of being wrapped in leather like the Tempered Sword was, was wrapped in some white cloth that was tied off near the pommel, though there was some extra cloth that hung from the end of the grip._

_Legend unsheathed it, showing an iridescent blade. The light reflected off it prismatically in shades of green, red, blue, and violet. He then spoke._

_“I found this around the end of my first adventure, in a place called the ‘Palace of the Four Sword,’ which I guess means that this sword is called the Four Sword. I don’t know a lot about it, actually, but I believe it can split into four and could be wielded by four people at the same time.”_

_“Really?” asked Hyrule. “How do you know?”_

_“When I adventured into the Palace, I recovered four swords just like this one, except the gems were colored. When I reached the boss room of the Palace, the swords flew beyond my grasp and I had to fight four shadow copies of myself, each wielding one of those four swords.”_

_Hyrule winced. “The final enemy I fought before reclaiming the Triforce of Courage was a shadow copy of myself. He was probably the most difficult foe I’ve faced.”_

_Legend nodded. “Like that, but, for some reason, they were shorter? Anyway, after I defeated those four, the swords merged and formed this sword.” He sheathed the sword. “I don’t really know how to use its true power, but the Tempered Sword and my magic items are more than enough for me.”_

△  
△△

Oh. That’s where he saw it before. In Legend’s house when he had been first dropped into his time. Back when they thought that they would just need to get Hyrule back in his time and not have another adventure. That almost felt like it was ages ago.

Maybe there was a connection between that and Legend’s reaction when he saw Four-

“Traveler? You’re staring.” Four was looking at him in a mixture of confusion and annoyance.

“Oh, sorry, Smithy.”

“Well, glad that you for one have not paled and become unresponsive.”

Legend rolled his eyes.

“Anyway,” Hyrule said, choosing his words carefully, “That’s a very interesting looking sword you have there.”

“Oh, this?” Four unsheathed the Four Sword, the light reflecting off of it in colors exactly the same way as the sword Legend had in his house. “This is the Four Sword. I made it myself, it’s my finest work.”

Hyrule noticed out of the corner of his eyes that Legend paled slightly at that last sentence. He got the feeling that Legend would rather _not_ let Four know that he had found the sword in his time.

“But anyway,” Four said, “I digress. You were offering to help me finish packing, right?” He pointed over to a small pile of items next to a bag. “Go pack those away while I gather my other belongings.”

Four went up a flight of stairs into a room above.

Hyrule started packing Four’s stuff. They were the typical items for a hero. A boomerang, a bow, all that kind of stuff.

Legend excused himself, saying that he needed to get some fresh air.

“So… Traveler,” Mask said, casually leaning on a wall, “Looks like you recognized the sword on his back.”

“Uh, yeah. It reminded me of something.”

“Uh huh.” Mask raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t it quite _odd_ that you and Veteran seem to recognize something about him?”

“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about, Mask. I only thought his sword looked familiar I didn’t react like Veteran did.”

“Right,” said an obviously disbelieving Mask. “Speaking of Veteran, have you tried talking to him? Maybe he and you might be able to establish why Smithy is somehow familiar. Maybe you could help him get through whatever is plaguing him so much.”

“What makes you so good at giving advice about helping people manage their feelings all of the sudden?”

“I’ve helped a lot of people myself, easing their regrets. Though quite frankly it’s much harder to ease your own regrets than to ease someone else’s.”

Hyrule pondered that for a moment. “I think I don’t want to know why you’re mature enough to give me advice on this, with how young you are.”

Mask grinned. “Trust me, you _don’t_.”

Hyrule grabbed a strange blue and white jar-like contraption and stowed it in Four’s bag. “If you know so much about this, why don’t you talk to Veteran yourself?”

The boy shrugged. “You seemed to know something about Smithy, like Veteran. You would probably be more understanding than I am, especially since I have _no idea_ why the two of you seem to recognize him or his sword.”

Four entered the room again, carrying more stuff. “Thanks, Traveler. I can do the rest. Where’s Veteran?”

“Outside. Said he needed fresh air. I’m going to go talk to him.” Hyrule left the room.

Legend was seated at the edge of the hill, staring over South Hyrule Field. He seemed to notice Hyrule’s presence but didn’t say anything.

Hyrule sat down next to him, but Legend didn’t seem to react.

Well, this was an awkward way to start a conversation.

Hyrule spoke up anyway. “Veteran, isn’t that the same sword as the one you had in your house?”

Legend nodded but stayed silent.

“Smithy looks familiar to you, doesn’t he? Is that why you reacted the way you did?”

Legend didn’t answer.

“I mean, I recognized the Four Sword, but he didn’t have it when we first met him. Is there something you’re not telling me?”

There was nothing save the chirping of crickets.

“Veteran. _Look at me._ ”

Legend turned to face Hyrule.

“Is there something about the sword you’re not telling me?”

The veteran finally spoke. “I’ve told you everything I know about it.”

“I’m not so sure, Veteran.” Hyrule sighed. “I don’t think you’re telling us the whole truth.”

“…Look, Traveler. I told you. I found four copies of the sword in the Palace of the Four Sword, and fought four Dark Links, and the swords merged.”

“Is there something else you’re not telling me? Why you seemed to recognize Smithy?”

“Look, Traveler. It won’t happen again. I was just taken by surprise, that is all.”

△  
△△

In their previous meeting, Four hadn’t gotten a chance to interact with Mask very much. He had been too busy being told by Hyrule what the situation was and being concerned for Legend.

After Hyrule left, Four and Mask were left in the house.

Four liked to think he was pretty good at reading someone’s personality. In Hyrule, he saw a sense of wonder at all these new places, though limited by wariness. In Legend, he saw someone who had seen much of this already and was rather jaded.

Mask was something else, however.

At first sight, he looked like a carefree child. A lazy one who didn’t care about anything more than playtime. After all, when Four walked back in the room with more of his stuff, he noticed that Mask was casually leaning on a wall.

However, at closer inspection, Mask’s childishness seemed to be a carefully made act. One crafted to hide the person who played it.

 _Like a mask_ , part of him said. The other three parts of him instantly groaned at the pun.

Four had eavesdropped on part of Hyrule’s and Mask’s conversation. The boy was surprisingly mature for a ten-year-old.

Four looked up at Mask. The boy was watching him with slight amusement in his eyes. The act was almost flawless, except for one thing.

As Four looked at Mask’s eyes, he noticed that they seemed to stare _through_ him. They were bereft of the innocence that normally inhabited the eyes of children.

What was Mask _really_ like, behind all the acting? Getting an answer to that question would probably be far from easy.

Mask seemed to notice that Four was staring at him. “What, Smithy? Is there something wrong with my face?” He smirked, though Four couldn’t help but notice that his smile didn’t entirely meet his eyes.

“No, nothing.”

“Okay, then.” Mask stretched out his arms and yawned. “By the way, Smithy, there were some Minish in the Library that were talking about you. They seemed quite fond of you.”

Four nodded. “I helped them out a while back… Hey, wait a second, how do you know about the Minish? How could you understand their speech?”

“Oh, I just happened to grow up among unageing forest children.”

“As one does,” Four said sarcastically.

“Yes, exactly,” said Mask. Okay, he was _definitely_ amused by this. “Anyway, I heard tales of the Minish growing up, and how they were associated with some previous hero. I take it that you’re that hero.”

“Well, you found me. But Mask, how did you understand what they said? I had to get a Jabber Nut to understand their language.”

Mask smiled. “I have strange powers.”

Four sighed. “We _all_ do, Mask.”

“Then you should understand.” Mask was obviously having fun with this.

“Are you _always_ this cryptic?”

“Maybe.”

Four rolled his eyes. “It’s _impossible_ to get you to give a straight answer, it seems.”

“I try.”

Four turned back to his stuff. He made sure to pack each of his colors’ favorite weapons in their designated quarters of the bag. The last thing he needed was for his hammer to be in the wrong compartment. Blue would probably attack one of the other colors if that happened.

The door opened, and in walked Hyrule and Legend.

Mask looked at Hyrule. “Did you have that talk?”

Hyrule nodded. “Veteran says that it won’t happen again.”

Legend rolled his eyes. “I’m _right here_ , if you couldn’t tell. But yes, what happened earlier won’t happen again.”

“Well, it’d better, or you’ll have a lot of explaining to do,” Mask said. “Again, while I would rather not have talked about Majora’s Mask, I did feel obligated to tell you after what happened. I’d expect you to act similarly.”

“I’m getting advice from a ten-year-old,” Legend noted.

“Yes you are. What of it?”

Four decided to tune out the other Links as he finished packing. Otherwise, he’d be too distracted listening in on them to get anything done.

He put everything in its proper place, closed his bag, and stood up. “Okay, I’m done packing.”

Hyrule got Mask’s and Legend’s attention. “Smithy’s done. Should we stay for the night or get going now?”

“You can stay here for the night. I conveniently have three extra beds; you can stay in them.” Four decided not to mention why he had three extra beds. “Though they might be a bit small for you.”

“Thanks, Smithy.”


	6. What's Done Cannot Be Undone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Link had won; he figured that he should feel victorious._
> 
> _He did not._
> 
> _He felt sick and empty._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for this.
> 
> (CW: blood, death)

Legend should have seen it coming. He really should.

In fact, he was pretty sure he told Hyrule that he suspected that it would happen.

Not that Hyrule understood. No, Legend had conveniently omitted those details.

But those Dark Links in the Palace of the Four Sword… They looked _exactly_ like the newest Link.

He remembered the Palace of the Four Sword as if he had been there yesterday. The four colors lying dead on the ground, their tunics stained with blood. The Master Sword growing unbearably hot four times, forcing him to drop it four times. But what terrified him the most about the Palace was how they seemed to already know him.

They were four people, but that didn't mean anything. Legend could turn into a painting. Mask could get himself possessed by a god. No doubt this Link could split into four.

Even worse, they called him “Veteran,” which was the nickname Mask and Hyrule were using for him. It likely meant that they had met him sometime during this quest.

There was no question about it. Those four in Palace of the Four Sword were this Link, but in the distant future. And that meant that Legend had killed one of his predecessors.

He felt himself being violently shaken out of his thoughts by Hyrule.

“Gah!” He glared at Hyrule angrily. “Traveler, what the f*ck”?

Mask did not look amused. “Veteran, you’ve been unresponsive for seventeen minutes. Or did you just want to stand here in the middle of a forge blankly staring?”

He what now? Blankly stared? For seventeen minutes?

Hyrule looked quite concerned. “Veteran, you looked like you’ve seen a ghost. And not in the literal sense. Let’s go outside.” Something in Hyrule’s tone of voice indicated that he wanted to _talk_ outside, which Legend would rather avoid.

He followed them out of the house anyway, while his thoughts swirled turbulently through his head.

How could he travel with this newest Link when he knew that he would eventually die by Legend’s own hand?

“Veteran, what was that all about? Why were you just staring blankly at this time’s Link?” Hyrule paused for a moment, waiting for a response that Legend did not give. He continued regardless. “You look like Mask when he saw Majora’s Mask in your house.”

Legend rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, I get it. I didn’t react well.”

He had to downplay everything as much as possible. He couldn’t let the other Links suspect anything, or, goddesses forbid, find out. They would never forgive him if they knew that he had already killed the latest Link in the distant future.

Legend couldn’t forgive himself, how could any of the others forgive him?

△  
△△

As they ate dinner in Hyrule Town, Legend completely tuned out Hyrule and Mask's conversation. Instead, he was lost in his thoughts again, as they struck over and over like lightning in a tempest.

He had blood on his hands. He had killed someone, and now the person who he had killed would now be travelling with them.

The goddesses sure had a sick sense of humor, that was for sure.

“Veteran, is there something wrong?” Hyrule asked concernedly.

Legend looked up from the food he was staring at. “…Nothing. Just lost in thought, that’s all.”

That was technically true. Better a half-truth than a complete lie to deceive others with.

“What happened back there, anyway? You first just froze up in Smithy’s house, and then now you’re not talking to anybody.”

"I'm fine." Even if they didn't believe him, lying was still better than the alternative.

Hyrule only looked more concerned. “Look, Veteran. If there’s something wrong, you should talk about it.”

“I’m _fine._ ” They could never know what Legend had done.

“If you’re fine, then why have you been acting the way you have recently?”

That shut Legend up. He would only be digging his hole deeper if he repeated himself.

Mask spoke up. “There’s nothing wrong with holding secrets. I have many of my own that I’d rather not talk about. But if keeping it is just going to cause problems, you should talk about it. Or at least confide in _someone_ about it.”

No. They would never understand. They would hate him for it.

“I’ve just had a lot to think about. Nothing too serious.” It _was_ that serious, but he couldn’t let them know.

Mask was clearly unsatisfied with his answer. “Nothing too serious, which is why you blanked out in Smithy’s house. Oh, yes, nothing important. Just like how unimportant my fight with that mask was, that sure explains why you had to watch over me while I was unconscious for a few days.” He rolled his eyes. “You have _got_ to be kidding me.”

Of course. Leave it to the other Link with serious baggage to suspect that he was hiding something.

“Look, Mask. It won’t happen again.”

“It’d better not.”

△  
△△

They were back at Four’s forge, as had been arranged earlier that day.

Four answered a moment after Hyrule knocked the door. He let them in.

Legend took a good look at Four. He was dressed for an adventure. He had a shield on his back, and he had _that sword_.

That was only confirmation of his suspicions.

Perhaps those four in the Palace of the Four Sword were copies of him like how Legend knew the Four Sword itself could split and merge.

After all, _that_ sword on Four’s back was the version with the black gem, not with the colored gems. It was whole, not in quarters, and Four was probably the same.

He looked over to Four’s bag, which Hyrule had started to help packing. He could see a boomerang, a fire rod, a hammer, and a bow.

He recognized those weapons. Those were the same ones as the ones wielded by the Shadow Links in the Palace of the Four Sword.

It made too much sense.

Legend suddenly felt overwhelmed by everything. He _had_ to go outside.

"I'm going to get some fresh air," he said, trying (and probably failing) to act natural. He quickly walked out the door, practically dying to go outside, yet not wanting to seem suspicious.

He took shallow, quick breaths of the crisp, cold air. It wasn’t until he started feeling rather lightheaded that he realized that he was hyperventilating.

How does one deal with that? Right. Long, deep breaths. Long, deep breaths.

Legend slowly got his breathing back under control.

His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts. He tried desperately to clear his head.

Legend heard the door open and close again and felt Hyrule’s presence. The traveler sat next to him.

Legend tried the best he could to make it clear that he wasn’t going to talk to Hyrule.

The traveler stubbornly decided to say something, anyway. “Veteran, isn’t that the same sword as the one you had in your house?”

So he recognized it too, didn’t he? Legend couldn’t be _too_ surprised by this. After all, he showed Hyrule the sword not that long after they first met.

But Hyrule didn’t understand. Legend hadn’t told him that the Shadow Links looked exactly like the Smithy. He hadn’t told the Traveler about how the colors had recognized him in their dying moments.

Hyrule would never forgive him if he found out.

Well, Hyrule had seen the sword himself. Denying it would be futile.

Legend nodded.

Hyrule pressed further. “Smithy looks familiar to you, doesn’t he? Is that why you reacted the way you did?”

He could tell, couldn’t he? Or was the Traveler just guessing?

Legend decided not to answer Hyrule.

Hyrule went on. “I mean, I recognized the Four Sword, but he didn’t have it when we first met him. Is there something you’re not telling me?”

Well, of course. But not that Legend would ever tell him. Hyrule must never find out what had happened.

“Veteran. _Look at me_.” Hyrule’s patience was wearing thin

Legend turned to face Hyrule. The traveler’s face was etched with concern.

“Is there something about the sword you’re not telling me?”

“…I’ve told you everything I know about it,” Legend lied.

Hyrule clearly didn’t believe him. “I’m not so sure, Veteran. I don’t think you’re telling us the whole truth.”

“…Look, Traveler. I told you. I found four copies of the sword in the Palace of the Four Sword, and fought four Dark Links, and the swords merged.” It _was_ the truth, but Legend refused to admit that the Dark Links were the Smithy.

Hyrule was unsatisfied. “Is there something else you’re not telling me? Why you seemed to recognize Smithy?”

“Look, Traveler,” Legend backpedaled, “it won’t happen again. I was just taken by surprise, that is all.”

△  
△△

Four was willing to let them sleep at his house for the night. Hyrule thanked Four for his hospitality, while Mask seemed satisfied with the accommodations. Legend stayed silent and tried to hide his discomfort.

Sleep eventually managed to overtake him, but his dreams were always there to torment him.

_Link was in a hallway deep inside of the Palace of the Four Sword. The floor was invisible, but it led on a straight path ahead. The room was flanked by two lines of torches, one on each side._

_There was a door at the end of the hallway, and Link walked on the invisible path onto the doorway ahead._

_The room beyond the door looked like a boss room. The floor was blue, but there was a green tile design at the center, depicting four swords._

_The four swords that Link had found throughout the dungeon._

_He heard the door slam behind him. So this_ was _a boss room._

_Link reached into his bag and took out the four swords he had found. They were nearly identical shortswords with a gold hilt. Indeed, the only difference between the swords were the colors of the gem set into the pommel._

_Strangely, the blades didn’t reflect much light. They were dull, despite looking like they should brightly reflect light. Almost as if it were in shadow._

_Link could sense a magic spell being activated as the swords floated away, drifting to the corners of the room. They then shot upwards, flying out of sight._

_From the void above, a person dropped down. He was short, with long hair. He wore a green tunic that was embroidered in one corner with an elegant design._

_He was also a living shadow, dark with glowing red eyes. And he was carrying one of those four swords, the one with the green gem._

_The shadow raised his sword and charged. Link dodged, spun around, unsheathing the Master Sword. He shoved the shadow with his shield arm._

_The shadow slammed into a wall, briefly stunned by the force of the impact. Link quickly swung his sword, but his enemy recovered at the last second and blocked it with his shield._

_Link backed up before his enemy could take the opportunity to counterattack._

_The shadow instead pulled out a boomerang and threw it at Link. It struck him, briefly stunning him. The Shadow Link sprung into action, swinging the sword at Link, but Link managed to snap out of it and barely dodge the heavy-handed attack._

_Link swung at the shadow, but he was parried. The Shadow Link tried to counterattack with a thrust, but Link managed to block him with his shield. He jumped back, and the Shadow Link once again threw the boomerang at him._

_Link leapt aside, barely dodging the boomerang. He charged at the Shadow Link, aggressively swinging the Master Sword at it. The Shadow Link blocked the sword with his shield and responded with a slash of his own. Link quickly blocked it with his shield, using the opening to thrust the Blade of Evil’s Bane into the shadow’s abdomen._

_The Master Sword glowed with holy light as it cut into Link’s foe. There was a flash of light from the sacred blade, and darkness shot everywhere as it was purged from the enemy._

_The sword’s hilt suddenly turned very hot, forcing Link to drop it to the ground. Link looked to see his opponent, who had collapsed to the floor. But he had transformed._

_His enemy was no longer a living shadow; he was a Hylian much like Link. He had blond hair and green eyes. And yet he still had the wound where Link had stabbed him, and blood ran from it, staining his green tunic red._

_Horrifyingly, he looked only a few years older than Link himself._

_“Veteran… Veteran, is that you?” he said. “It’s me, Green.”_

_Link stood there, dumbstruck._

_“It’s okay if you don’t remember me, it’s been a little while. It’s good to see you again.” Green smiled sadly. “Though I suppose my time’s up… Thank you, Veteran… please… save… the… others… too…”_

_Green closed his eyes, and he moved no more._

_Link felt strangely empty, as if he had just killed a dear friend. Which was strange, since he had never seen him before._

_Link stared at Green’s corpse in shock until he heard a sound behind him. He grabbed the Master Sword again and turned around to face the source of the noise._

_It was another shadow, like the one possessing Green. He looked identical to Green, except his tunic was red, and the fancy embroidered pattern was in a different corner of the tunic. He held the sword with the red gem._

_The shadow hefted a fire rod and shot flames at Link. Link backed away from the shadow. It would be too risky getting too close, into the range of the fire rod._

_He pulled out his own fire rod. What better way do face this new threat than by fighting fire with fire?_

_Link sent a fireball at the enemy, but he jumped aside._

_His enemy held his sword in front of him, seemingly concentrating. Link didn’t realize what was happening until it was too late. The shadow unleashed something akin to a Spin Attack, except he just kept spinning._

_Link hid behind his shield to block the relentless attacks. He put away his fire rod and instead threw his boomerang at his enemy. It hit him, disrupting him just enough for him to stop._

_The shadow shot flames at him with his fire rod now that Link was close. Link leapt out of the way, flames scorching where he had been only a second ago._

_The adversary leapt at Link, swinging his sword, but Link parried the attack with the Master Sword. He counterattacked with a slash, but the shadow stopped it with the rim of shield._

_Link jumped back and pulled out his bow. He pulled out a Silver Arrow from his quiver and shot it at the shadow as a distraction. While it moved its shield to block it, he pulled out the Cane of Somaria._

_The falling cube struck him in the head, knocking him down. Link quickly sprang into action, leaping at the shadow with the Master Sword. The Blade of Evil’s Bane sliced across the Shadow Link’s torso, once again glowing brightly with holy light as it seemed to banish dark magic from him._

_For a second time, the Master Sword grew burning hot. Link was forced to drop it._

_The person before him, like Green before him, was no longer a shadow. He was a Hylian who resembled Link a lot. But unlike Green, his eyes were a dark red._

_He was on the floor, bleeding profusely. After a bit of effort, he managed to get a few words out._

_“Veteran…”_

_“It’s going to be all right,” Link finally managed, “…Red.” Link figured that that person was named Red much like Green was named Green._

_“So you_ do _remember me?” Red took a labored, shaky breath. “Veteran… I’m_ so _sorry. For… everything… that’s… happened…”_

_Red lay there, completely still._

_His eyes were open, but there was no light in them. They stared blankly in Link’s direction, but they did not see._

_Link slowly closed Red’s eyes. His body was still warm._

_Link felt no shortage of revulsion at this whole situation. He was being forced to kill people that seemed to know him because they had been corrupted by dark magic._

_There was a new noise. Link seized the Master Sword and turned to see a third shadow._

_The third shadow was identical to the previous two, except a different quadrant was embroidered and his tunic was blue. He wielded the sword with the blue gem._

_He took out a large hammer, akin to Link’s Magic Hammer, and slammed the head of the hammer into the floor._

_The ground shook, and Link struggled to keep his footing. The shadow then leapt at him with his sword, bringing his sword down on Link. Link blocked with his shield, but weight of the blow threw Link off balance. He fell on the ground._

_Link desperately reached into his bag, eventually finding the Cane of Byrna. He swung it just as the shadow was about to stab him._

_A magic shield formed around him in the last second, and the sword struck the shield, harmlessly deflected. The shield’s magic surged through the sword and knocked back the shadow._

_Link took the opportunity to get back on his feet. He dismissed the shield since it was draining on his magic reserves._

_He jumped back, the head of the shadow’s hammer swinging through his former location. Link could tell that it was too heavy for him to afford getting hit by it. He used the opening to swing his sword at the shadow, but it jumped back at the last second._

_With sudden inspiration, Link pulled out his own Magic Hammer and swung it at his foe. The Shadow Link couldn’t dodge in time and so brought up his shield in a last-ditch effort._

_The momentum of the hammer knocked the shadow backwards into a wall, and Link wasted no time in responding by bringing the Master Sword down on his shoulder with as much force as he could._

_A third time, the sword glowed brightly as it seemed to banish dark magic. And a third time, the Blade of Evil’s Bane became unbearably hot right after. Link clutched his hand in pain, dropping the sword. His hand was reddened by the burns._

_The third person was also no longer shadow. He too looked nearly identical to Green and Red. He was bleeding heavily from the wound on his shoulder, and his shield arm looked badly broken._

_He was slumped against the wall. He brought a hand to his wound with his good arm and winced as he touched it._

_He looked up, with vivid blue eyes, at Link. “Veteran? What brings you to a terrible place like this?”_

_“Blue, isn’t it? I could ask the same about you.” Link didn’t really know what was going on, but it seemed like the right thing to say._

_Blue scoffed. “If it weren’t for… everything, really… I’d stand up and smack you… It probably would have been for the best had you never entered here… never found out what happened to us… leave us to suffer alone.”_

_“I can’t just leave you to suffer like this.”_

_Blue coughed up blood. “And I’m free now… I suppose… I have you to thank…” He closed his eyes. “Veteran… despite how you act… you’ve… never… really… changed…”_

_His arm fell limply to the ground._

_Yet another one dead. Did he have a hope in saving_ any _of them?_

_He looked in his bag and dug. His fingers closed around something, and he pulled it out._

_It was a bottle of Blue Potion. It was quite precious, but perhaps Link could prevent more lives from being lost._

_He closed his back and picked the Master Sword up again, in time for the fourth shadow to drop from the void above. He was like the others except he wore a violet tunic with the final quadrant embroidered, and with the sword with the violet gem._

_The final shadow pulled out a bow and fired arrows at Link. Link took cover behind his Mirror Shield, the arrows glancing harmlessly off its polished surface._

_He reached around in his bag and threw his boomerang. The shadow dodged it, but it provided the opening that Link needed to spring into action._

_He used the Cane of Somaria to create a block behind him. Link then walked to one side while the shadow continued shooting, forcing him to turn. Soon the shadow’s back was at the block._

_Link pulled out the cane again and swung it. The block exploded into four magic projectiles, one of which hit the shadow squarely in the back. He dropped his bow in surprise. Link leapt at the shadow, forcing it to draw its sword instead of trying to pick his bow up._

_The two fought, magic blades clashing, skillfully parrying each other. This last Shadow Link was especially methodical with its swordsmanship and was wary of giving Legend an opportunity. But eventually, he attacked with too much confidence, and Link caught his blade with his own and twisted._

_The sword was knocked out the shadow’s hand. Before he could react, Link swung the Master Sword into his side._

_Once again, the sword glowed brightly and seemed to repel dark magic. And once again, the sword grew burning hot._

_Link dropped it and winced in pain, trying not to cry out. He grabbed his burned hand again, looking at its palm._

_The burns were starting to blister._

_His opponent, like the three before him, had transformed into a Hylian. And he too looked identical to the other three, except that his tunic and eyes were both violet._

_He looked up at Link, and his eyes, too, flashed with recognition._

_“I wouldn’t have expected to see you here, Veteran. It’s Vio, remember me?”_

_“You’re hurt, Vio.” Link reached into his bag. He couldn’t let another one die. “Quick, take a potion or a fairy.”_

_Vio shook his head. “It’s too late for me, Veteran. And the other colors are dead now, aren’t they? What is there left for me?”_

_Link could not answer._

_“Death, I suppose, is another adventure… though nobody returns from it… There are people… on the… other side… I would… like to… meet… again… Farewell… Hero… of… Legend…”_

_Vio exhaled and did not breathe again._

_And then, there was nothing. Only the sound of Link’s own heartbeat, his breathing, and the barely audible drip of blood on the ground._

_Link looked about him, at the four dead bodies. They… knew him. They had called him “Veteran,” though for what reason he knew not. They acted as if… as if Link were an old friend._

_Link put the Master Sword back in the sheath on his back. It emitted a strange sort of chime, almost as if it were trying to comfort him._

_The four swords that Link had carried into the room, the same four swords that had been wielded by the four shadows, suddenly lifted up._

_They lifted just over Link’s head and flew together. With a flash, they merged. In their place was a single sword, identical to the others except it had a black gem. Light reflected off of the sword in green, red, blue, and violet, and it shone with a luster that had not been seen earlier, as if it too had been corrupted by shadow and had been purified._

_The sword lowered itself to just over Link’s head, and Link grabbed the sword and held it aloft._

_Link had won; he figured that he_ should _feel victorious._

_He did not._

_He felt sick and empty._

_He put the sword in his bag, turned around, and walked towards the exit. At the last second, he stopped, and turned back._

_The four colors lay dead on the ground, lying in pools of their own blood._

_And yet, they looked like they had found peace in their eternal rest._

_Link gave a quick prayer to the goddesses for them, before turning and walking out._

△  
△△

Legend woke up to ocarina music. Specifically, a short song that Mask was playing on his bright blue ocarina.

It was probably one of those magic wakefulness-inducing songs, which wasn’t something Legend appreciated. After all, his previous experiences with them were… rather unpleasant, to say the least.

He grumbled something and glared at Mask. The boy simply raised an eyebrow.

“Huh. You’d think you’d be glad to be woken up from a nightmare.”

“I don’t like being woken up by magic songs.” Noting Mask’s inquisitive glance, he added, “Personal reasons.”

“I see. I’ll throw water on you next time.”

Legend rolled his eyes at that. He then sat up and looked out the window. It was still nighttime.

“It is currently 3:42 AM,” Mask said.

“…Why are you up this late?”

“Couldn’t sleep. It happens.”

There was silence. “I don’t think I’m going back to sleep,” Legend decided.

“Join the club,” deadpanned Mask. “So… do you want to talk about it?”

Legend was far from ready to talk about it. He could still see that room in the Palace of the Four Sword, with those four copies of the Smithy dead on the floor around him.

He looked at the palm of his left hand. The burns the Master Sword gave him had left their mark on him. Even now, after years of healing, Legend could still see the scars.

“…No.”

“…I see then. I won’t judge.” Mask sat on his bed and looked out the window.

The silence was so thick that one of them could cut it with the Blade of Evil’s Bane. Or at least they could have if they had the sword with them.

And in that silence, Legend’s thoughts ran wild.

What would the other Links think if they knew what Legend knew?

They would probably never forgive him if they knew that Legend had killed one of their own.

Meeting Four had dug up all those painful memories of that fight in the Palace of the Four Sword, even after all those years. The wound had reopened.

Legend couldn’t even as much as look at Four without feeling guilty. Seeing the Smithy, he could only see the four colors on the floor of the Palace of the Four Sword, recognizing him in their last moments as they bled out.

“Veteran.” It was Mask again. “Has anyone told you that your regrets seem to weigh heavily on you?”

“Huh?”

“Your regrets.” Mask smiled sadly. “I’ve seen what regret does to a person. It eats away at them on the inside. And even after they die… they can’t move on. They just linger, wallowing in their self-hatred, completely helpless, until someone comes along to ease them.”

Legend stayed silent.

Mask continued. “Just… don’t let them weigh down on you. It can destroy a person; I would not like to see that happen to any of you.”

“I’ll try,” Legend said after a pause.

But how? He had blood of one of their own on his hands. No wonder why the Master Sword had burned him. How could he be a hero when he had killed one of his predecessors? He was less than worthy to bear the blade.

Perhaps all the suffering he had gone through afterwards was punishment for his crimes.

Legend noticed that Mask was bringing his ocarina to his mouth again. He started playing again.

This time, he played a slow, somber tune. And yet, it felt strangely calming. It was almost as if his regrets were melting away.

Mask finished playing and looked at Legend again. “What do you think?”

“That was… calming.”

The boy nodded. “Very useful song for healing regrets. Though it’s not nearly as good at healing the person who plays it…” A shadow passed over his face. “But that’s neither here nor there. Anyway, whatever’s causing you problems can wait until sunrise at the very least.”

Mask paused and stared into Legend. “The music can soothe, but it’s always better to deal with the root cause of the problem. If you don’t want to tell why you’ve been acting strangely, then I’d suggest that you figure things out.”

Legend nodded.

But how could he deal with the root cause of the problem? He already knew what would end up happening to Four. He was _doomed_ to end up as a shadow in the Palace of the Four Sword, no matter what happened.

The Smithy was beyond help.

And what of his other regrets? He had _already_ killed the Smithy in the future. That wasn’t something he could just “deal with,” he would always have Four’s blood on his hands.

Mask, too, must not know. He would also never forgive Legend.

Thankfully, the boy had a treasure trove of secrets on his own and was willing to respect Legend’s privacy. But what terrified Legend about Mask was how the boy was able to _read_ him so well. If Mask put his mind to trying to figure Legend out, he no doubt would find out all sorts of things.

And he was _scarily_ mature for someone who was only about ten years old.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took an entire week to write.
> 
> I definitely wasn't expecting this to take such a dark turn, but here we are.
> 
> The name of the chapter is a quote from Act V Scene 1 of Shakespeare's _Macbeth_. Quite fitting, considering the context.
> 
> On lighter news, I have a beta reader now! Thanks to SunlitEspeon for helping edit this chapter!


	7. Setting Out Once Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Oh, hey there,” Four said. The two of them turned to look at him. Mask was looking fairly cheerful, if a bit tired, while Legend… was staring at Four like he could shatter like glass any moment.

Four yawned and got up. It was some time after sunrise, if the light filtering through the windows said anything.

Hyrule was asleep in a bed next to him. Curiously, Legend and Mask weren’t in their beds. They were probably awake, then.

He got dressed in his usual multicolored tunic and slightly oversized belt and was just about ready to start the day when Hyrule started stirring.

He sat up and looked around him, scanning his surroundings.

Was it for threats? That unnerved Four a bit. What kind of things would the traveler have to go through to be this wary?

Hyrule got up, already fully dressed.

“Morning, Traveler.”

“Morning, Smithy,” Hyrule said. He looked around him again. “Where did Veteran and Mask go?”

Four shrugged. “No idea.”

They went down to the lower floor. Legend and Mask were there, wide awake.

“Oh, hey there,” Four said. The two of them turned to look at him. Mask was looking fairly cheerful, if a bit tired, while Legend… was staring at Four like he could shatter like glass any moment.

What was his problem?

“Oh, hey, Smithy, Traveler,” Mask said.

“…Mask, how much did you sleep last night?”

“Didn’t.” Mask smiled.

Four sighed. “You should get sleep.”

“Sleep is for the weak. I can go 72 hours without so much as a nap just fine.”

“That _cannot_ be healthy,” Hyrule muttered.

Four noticed that Legend was staying silent throughout all of this. Strange.

Mask simply shrugged and took out a bottle of milk.

“Wait, Mask,” Hyrule said. “You didn’t have that last night…”

“Midnight snack.” He uncorked the bottle and sipped his milk.

Four facepalmed.

Most of him was just irritated that Mask was insisting on acting this way, but part of him just wanted to join in.

 _Of course_ part of him _had_ to.

Mask corked the bottle again and wiped excess milk off his mouth with a dramatic swipe of the arm.

“Ah, that’s the good stuff.”

Four cleared his throat. “So are we going to go anywhere?”

Hyrule shrugged. “Usually we… kind of wander around until we get sent into another time? I’m not really good at explaining it.”

“Well, when I joined, Veteran was the one who explained it,” Mask said. He glanced at Legend. “Though it doesn’t seem like he’s in a mood to do so.”

“Hmmm.” Four thought for a moment. Simply wandering around wouldn’t do at all. “If there’s a new threat, there’s probably going to be more monster sightings.”

Legend pulled out a map of Four’s Hyrule.

“Where did you get that, Veteran?” asked Mask.

“Copied the one in the library.” Legend kept his words curt and concise. He clearly wasn’t in a talking mood.

Four pulled out his own map. “Would you have happened to have seen any monsters in Hyrule Field?”

“No,” Mask said.

“Good. I’d be very concerned if there were.” Four looked at his map and thought for a moment. “If a new threat is approaching, it would make sense for them to first appear in the outskirts of Hyrule.”

“Where do you suggest we go, then?” Hyrule asked.

“Hmm, I was thinking we could go to the Minish Woods to the southeast.” Four secretly hoped he would get the opportunity to visit the Minish there again.

“Sounds like a plan, then.”

Four sighed internally. Seems like he was the only one who actually _planned_ ahead.

Even if he had to regularly put up with his own internal disagreements when he did so.

△  
△△

With a destination in mind, the Links set out for the Minish Woods. They were now walking through Hyrule Field.

“Smithy?”

Four turned towards Hyrule, who was holding a kinstone. “I was meaning to ask, what is this? I nearly broke a tooth on it when I was eating lunch the other day.”

Four raised an eyebrow. “I suppose that there’s a story to be had somewhere there.”

“Do you know or not?”

“It’s a kinstone. It’s a custom in this time to ‘fuse kinstones,’ where you meet it up with its other half. It’s considered good luck.” Four dug out his pouch of kinstones. “Speaking of, Traveler, want to fuse Kinstones?”

Hyrule shrugged. “Sure, why not?”

Four rummaged through the bag for a kinstone of the same shape and color. He eventually found one.

It fit perfectly with Hyrule’s. The two halves fused together, before vanishing in a poof of magic.

“Well, it worked,” Four said. “Something good’s bound to happen now.”

Mask seemed to have taken notice of their conversation. “A custom, you say? My time has some, too.” He pulled out one of his masks. “It’s traditional in Termina to wear masks in the Carnival of Time.”

“Interesting. Mask, does your _Hyrule_ have any particularly interesting customs?”

Mask shrugged. “Nothing I’m particularly aware of.”

Conspicuously absent from the conversation was Legend.

“Hey, Veteran,” Hyrule said, clearly trying to get Legend to talk. “What traditions do the lands you’ve visited had?”

“…Not much worth talking about.” Legend _clearly_ wasn’t in a talking mood.

How odd.

“Come on, Veteran, you’ve been to many places! _Surely_ there’s something you want to share.”

Legend shook his head, much to Hyrule’s disappointment.

△  
△△

The Minish Woods was usually a rather peaceful place. Four hoped it had stayed that way.

They decided on a spot to set up camp and placed their stuff down. It was around midday.

“The monsters that live in these woods are usually just the fairly annoying ones,” Four explained. “Octoroks, Like Likes, those sorts. Not a challenge, just a nuisance.”

“Usually,” Mask pointed out.

“Well, if there’s a new threat to Hyrule approaching, you never know.”

“Makes sense,” said Hyrule. “I think we should be cautious. We don’t know what we’re dealing with here.”

Four thought for a moment. “I think some of us should scout around. It’ll certainly be risky, going alone, but we’re all capable even by ourselves.” He paused. “There’s a place I want to go, where I might get some information on recent happenings.”

“I’m certainly up for scouting,” Mask volunteered. “Not every day that we get to be in forests, and I quite like them.”

A few eyebrows were raised at that. Mask didn’t elaborate.

“I’ll stay at camp,” Legend said.

“Then I will, too,” Hyrule added.


End file.
